MBB Public Markets I LLC Makes New $299,000 Investment in NetApp, Inc. $NTAP

Key Points

• MBB Public Markets I LLC has purchased a new position in NetApp, Inc., acquiring 3,407 shares valued at approximately $299,000 in the first quarter.
• Analysts have generally maintained a neutral" rating for NetApp, with a consensus price target of $124.07, but several firms have adjusted their price objectives upwards.
• CEO George Kurian and EVP Elizabeth M. O'callahan sold a significant number of their shares, with Kurian's sale amounting to over $865,000, indicating recent insider selling activity.

MBB Public Markets I LLC acquired a new stake in NetApp, Inc. (NASDAQ:NTAP - Free Report) during the 1st quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the SEC. The fund acquired 3,407 shares of the data storage provider's stock, valued at approximately $299,000.

A number of other institutional investors and hedge funds have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the stock. Vanguard Group Inc. lifted its holdings in shares of NetApp by 2.3% in the first quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 27,041,930 shares of the data storage provider's stock valued at $2,375,363,000 after purchasing an additional 597,956 shares in the last quarter. Ameriprise Financial Inc. boosted its position in NetApp by 1.0% during the 1st quarter. Ameriprise Financial Inc. now owns 7,096,679 shares of the data storage provider's stock worth $623,383,000 after acquiring an additional 72,223 shares during the last quarter. Invesco Ltd. grew its stake in shares of NetApp by 12.3% during the 1st quarter. Invesco Ltd. now owns 3,507,590 shares of the data storage provider's stock worth $308,107,000 after acquiring an additional 384,362 shares in the last quarter. UBS AM a distinct business unit of UBS ASSET MANAGEMENT AMERICAS LLC raised its holdings in shares of NetApp by 8.0% in the fourth quarter. UBS AM a distinct business unit of UBS ASSET MANAGEMENT AMERICAS LLC now owns 2,986,330 shares of the data storage provider's stock valued at $346,653,000 after purchasing an additional 220,393 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Amundi lifted its position in shares of NetApp by 11.8% in the first quarter. Amundi now owns 2,179,710 shares of the data storage provider's stock worth $183,209,000 after purchasing an additional 230,793 shares in the last quarter. 92.17% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of research analysts recently weighed in on the stock. Barclays raised their target price on shares of NetApp from $117.00 to $125.00 and gave the company an "overweight" rating in a research report on Thursday, August 28th. Wedbush restated a "neutral" rating and issued a $150.00 price objective on shares of NetApp in a report on Thursday, August 28th. Wells Fargo & Company lowered their target price on NetApp from $115.00 to $100.00 and set an "equal weight" rating on the stock in a research report on Friday, May 30th. UBS Group increased their price target on NetApp from $108.00 to $114.00 and gave the company a "neutral" rating in a research report on Thursday, August 28th. Finally, Bank of America raised their price target on NetApp from $121.00 to $125.00 and gave the company a "neutral" rating in a research note on Monday, August 25th. Seven research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and ten have issued a Hold rating to the company's stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has an average rating of "Hold" and an average price target of $124.07.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other news, EVP Elizabeth M. O'callahan sold 1,000 shares of NetApp stock in a transaction on Wednesday, September 10th. The stock was sold at an average price of $123.67, for a total value of $123,670.00. Following the transaction, the executive vice president owned 23,628 shares in the company, valued at approximately $2,922,074.76. This trade represents a 4.06% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is accessible through this hyperlink. Also, CEO George Kurian sold 8,500 shares of the company's stock in a transaction on Monday, August 18th. The stock was sold at an average price of $108.85, for a total value of $925,225.00. Following the sale, the chief executive officer owned 283,688 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $30,879,438.80. This represents a 2.91% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last ninety days, insiders sold 20,000 shares of company stock worth $2,180,315. Company insiders own 0.28% of the company's stock.

NetApp Price Performance

NTAP traded up $0.30 on Wednesday, hitting $123.67. 341,565 shares of the stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 2,052,125. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 2.55, a current ratio of 1.31 and a quick ratio of 1.28. NetApp, Inc. has a 12 month low of $71.84 and a 12 month high of $135.45. The firm has a market capitalization of $24.69 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 21.87, a PEG ratio of 2.70 and a beta of 1.46. The business has a 50-day moving average of $110.22 and a two-hundred day moving average of $100.13.

NetApp Announces Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, October 22nd. Investors of record on Friday, October 3rd will be paid a $0.52 dividend. This represents a $2.08 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 1.7%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, October 3rd. NetApp's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 36.75%.

NetApp Company Profile

NetApp, Inc provides cloud-led and data-centric services to manage and share data on-premises, and private and public clouds worldwide. It operates in two segments, Hybrid Cloud and Public Could. The company offers intelligent data management software, such as NetApp ONTAP, NetApp Snapshot, NetApp SnapCenter Backup Management, NetApp SnapMirror Data Replication, NetApp SnapLock Data Compliance, and storage infrastructure solutions, including NetApp All-Flash FAS series, NetApp Fabric Attached Storage, NetApp E/EF series, and NetApp StorageGRID.